Jessica, yes, I remember you and when you first spoke of wanting ferrets.
Steve and I don't have a webpage, but I REALLY think that your letter from
yesterday should appear in at least one webpage which deals prominently
with ferrets if you would be willing to have someone do that.  It is very
important that people be able to get across to those who aren't, yet, out
on their own what "responsibility" means, and I think you have done that
very well in your letter.  How are you planning to handle their needs
during your college years, and how do you manage to save for their medical
needs, or do you have an arrangement with your parents?  As you have
found, it's a lot to take on.  I'm glad the ferrets found a situation in
which someone cares so much, but it sure gets complicated.  Doesn't it?
 
Wendy, as you know it takes previous sensitizing exposures to create an
allergy (which is why, in the rare times that true food allergies --
as opposed to sensitivities -- do develop they so often tend to be to
favorite foods or common foods).  There was some interesting multi-year
work still happening last year (or '98?, or early 2000?) in a mid-west
group, if my memory isn't playing me false, in which it was found that
ferrets whose vaccine was sent directly from the manufacturer tended to
have far fewer reactions than those whose vaccine had come through a
distributor.  I don't know if they have their final numbers on this, but
recall that what they were then seeing according to that post was a very,
very reduced rate when distributors were out of the loop.  This led to
the question of whether some distributors are mishandling the medications,
and if so, then what types of mishandling lead to increased rates of
reactions?  You might want to find out the vector for your vets' vaccines
over the last two years.  I am under the impression that very few get them
directly, and that reactions still occur but at a lower rate, if what was
said in that letter still holds.
 
Yes, alarms make sense.  So do a bunch of safety tips you often can get
from your local fire inspector or fire department including but not
limited to: not over-crowding electric outlets, not running your toaster
under or next to flammable things, not putting fertilizer near a furnace
(Can you say, "Kaboom!"?), not storing painting rags or ones dirty from
other flammable liquids, being careful with candles, getting rid of
sawdust, keeping gas grills far away from buildings and anything
flammable, not using broken electrical appliances, following appliance
directions (There are people who put blankets over types of heating pads
that can't be safely covered and so on.), being very careful with
cigarettes since they are one of the major causes of fire deaths, etc.
etc.  Oh, and Bryan, thanks for the education with your post yesterday!
 
Reet, unless you found some new archeological work with ferret remains
identified by a mammalian taxonomist that's just a repeat of that old and
tired Egyptian rumor.  Please, give your source.  See the Natural History
section in http://www.ferretcentral.org .
[Posted in FML issue 3113]